Silent Tides of the Deep Blue Sea

Chapter 9: A Shared Memory

Lia found herself sitting at a small café near the center of town, the bittersweet taste of nostalgia swirling in her chest. It had been days since the funeral, but the weight of Mason’s absence lingered in every corner of her hometown. She stared at her cup of coffee, barely touched, as the world outside continued to move on—oblivious to the storm inside her heart.
It was then that a voice broke through her thoughts.

“Lia?”

She looked up, startled, to see a familiar face standing in front of her. It was Ryan, one of Mason’s closest friends from high school. They had spent many summers together as part of a tight-knit group, but like most friendships, they had drifted apart after graduation.

“Ryan,” Lia said softly, offering him a small smile.

“Mind if I sit?” he asked, gesturing to the empty chair across from her.

“Of course,” she replied, her voice barely audible over the hum of the café.

Ryan sat down, his expression a mix of sadness and warmth. “It’s been a long time.”

“Yeah,” Lia nodded. “It feels like a lifetime ago.”

They sat in silence for a moment, the weight of their shared memories filling the space between them. Finally, Ryan spoke.
“I wanted to tell you something,” he began, his eyes downcast. “I don’t know if it’ll bring you any peace, but... Mason never stopped thinking about you.”

Lia’s heart skipped a beat, her breath catching in her throat. “What do you mean?”

Ryan took a deep breath, as if searching for the right words. “After he left, we stayed in touch for a while. Not as often as before, but enough. He... he asked about you, Lia. All the time.”

Lia’s eyes widened, her heart pounding in her chest. “He did?”

“Yeah,” Ryan continued, a sad smile on his lips. “He would check in, ask how you were doing, if you were okay. He’d even look at your social media from time to time, but he never reached out.”

Lia swallowed hard, her emotions swirling in a confusing mix of grief and regret. “Why didn’t he?”

Ryan’s smile faded, replaced by a look of understanding. “He didn’t want to drag you into his illness. He told me that he loved you too much to let you see him like that. He thought it would be easier for you to move on if he wasn’t in your life.”

Lia felt tears welling up in her eyes, her heart aching at the thought of Mason suffering alone, watching her from a distance but never reaching out. She had spent so long thinking he didn’t care, but now she knew the truth. He had cared too much.

“He never stopped loving you, Lia,” Ryan added softly. “That was the one thing he always made clear.”

---

A Shared Dream

Lia’s mind drifted back to one of the happiest memories she shared with Mason. It was the summer after their high school graduation, a time when everything seemed possible. The future stretched out before them like an open road, and they had been so full of hope and excitement.

They were sitting on the beach, as they so often did, the warm sand beneath them and the sound of the waves crashing in the distance. Mason was lying back, his arms folded behind his head, staring up at the sky.

“Can you believe we did it?” Mason said, a grin spreading across his face. “We actually survived high school.”

Lia laughed, leaning back on her hands. “Barely.”